Reaction I: The change is part of a major restructuring of the football officiating, and it’s only a decade too late. Kudos to second0-year commish Larry Scott for recognizing what longtime Pac-10 watchers have known for years: The league had a major credibility problem when it came to football officiating — a problem that pre-dates the Oklahoma-Oregon fiasco — that desperately needed fixing.

Reaction II: One practice that must change: Hiring replay booth officials who live within driving distance of the stadium (ie: the cheap way out). I won’t go so far as to call them homers, but it sure seems like they’re more likely to rule in favor of the home team if they live in the area. Like the officials who work on the field, the men in the booth must be from neutral locations.

Action: Las Vegas considers proposal for $1.57 billion downtown sports mega-plex with football, basketball and baseball venues. (The partially-enclosed football stadium will have a capacity of 50,000 with the potential to expand to 75,000.)

Reaction I: Here’s a look.

Reaction II: Yes, the Pac-12 is committed to the NFL playoff model (home field) for its championship game in the near term. But once the event gets established, I can’t help but wonder if it will switch to the Big Ten/SEC model (large neutral site), which brings the potential for greater revenue in the form of more seats, more signage, more luxury boxes, etc. Maybe the Las Vegas stadium (if it ever gets built) would join a rotation that includes the 49ers’ new stadium in Santa Clara (if it ever gets built).

Reaction III: And who knows: Maybe the Pac-12 basketball tournament will move to the proposal Las Vegas arena — if Fox ever lets the event out of Staples Center, that is.

Reaction I: Throughout the process, and especially now, I’ve wondered what the ordeal means for the future of athletic director Sandy Barbour. The mess was definitely not her creation, but she got caught in it and contributed to it. Can she … can any AD? … survive a crisis of this magnitude — one that ripples ago campus and generations?

Reaction II: I don’t expect to see Barbour step down in the next few weeks or months. But if she were to leave Berkeley in a year or two, it’s possible we’ll look back on the budget crisis/sports elimination ordeal as the tipping point in her largely successful tenure.

Reaction III: Salvaging three of the five sports on the chopping block doesn’t alter the fact that the Bears’ business model must change — and that change has to include an increase in overall fundraising (not just for the three sports in question). Multiple sources with intimate knowledge of the Cal athletic apparatus have told me over the past few months that the Bears grossly underachieve on the fundraising front, as compared to other schools of Cal’s size and stature.

Action: UCLA’s search for a defensive coordinator continues.

Reaction I: It only seems like the process has taken six months.

Reaction II: It’s the clearest indication yet that Rick Neuheisel’s peers view the Bruins as a sinking ship they don’t want to board. First the on-field performance, then the Norm Chow matter, then the recruiting woes, now the DC search … The Bruins are making Washington State look like a model football program.

Action: USC coach Kevin O’Neill says the conference could get five bids.

Reaction I: If he’s including the NIT, CollegeInsider and CBI tournaments, then yes. Absolutely five bids.

Reaction II: The conference probably will get three and has a slim shot at four. But five? No chance. The problem with the coaches making uninformed comments such as O’Neill’s is that they lose credibility on other issues, and the struggling league cannot afford to lose any more credibility.

Reaction: It won’t be the last story on the Bear’s QB dilemma between now and September. And as Dodd notes, Aaron Rodgers’ success only serves to highlight the problems since he left.

There’s a basketball item in here somewhere, but mostly, this is football, football, football … and Cal athletics.

(Also, I’ll be using Pac-12 when referring to football, since everything involves next season, but Pac-10 for basketball, since we haven’t finished with the current season.)

Action: Pac-12 hires former NFL coordinator of officials Mike Pereira as interim czar after Dave Cutaia steps down.Reaction I: The change is part of a major restructuring of the football officiating, and it’s only a decade too late. Kudos to second-year commish Larry Scott for recognizing what longtime league watchers have known for years: The conference had a major credibility problem when it came to football officiating — a problem that pre-dates the Oklahoma-Oregon fiasco — that desperately needed fixing.Reaction II: One practice that has hurt the conference: Hiring replay booth officials who live within driving distance of the stadium (ie: the cheap way out). I won’t go so far as to call them homers, but it sure seems like they’re more likely to rule in favor of the home team if they live in the area. Like the officials who work on the field, the men in the booth must be from neutral locations to better ensure neutrality.

Action: Las Vegas considers proposal for $1.57 billion downtown sports mega-plex with football, basketball and baseball venues. (The partially-enclosed football stadium will have a capacity of 50,000 with the potential to expand to 75,000.)Reaction I: Here’s a look.Reaction II: Yes, the Pac-12 is committed to the NFL playoff model (home field) for its championship game in the near term. But once the event gets established, I can’t help but wonder if it will switch to the Big Ten/SEC model (large neutral site), which brings the potential for greater revenue in the form of more seats, more space for signage, more luxury boxes, etc. Maybe the Las Vegas stadium (if it ever gets built) would join a neutral-site rotation that includes the 49ers’ new stadium in Santa Clara (if it ever gets built).Reaction III: And who knows: Maybe the Pac-12 basketball tournament will move to the proposal Las Vegas arena — if Fox ever lets the event out of Staples Center, that is.

Action: Cal preserves rugby and women’s lacrosse and gymnastics while cutting baseball and men’s gymnastics.Reaction I: Throughout the process, I’ve wondered what the ordeal means for the future of athletic director Sandy Barbour. The budget mess was definitely not her creation, but she got caught in it and contributed to it. Can she … can any AD? … survive a crisis of this magnitude — one that ripples across campus and generations?Reaction II: I don’t expect to see Barbour step down in the next few weeks or months. But if she were to leave Berkeley in a year or two, it’s possible we’ll look back on the budget crisis/sports elimination ordeal as the tipping point in her largely successful tenure.Reaction III: Salvaging three of the five sports on the chopping block doesn’t alter the fact that the Bears’ business model must change — and that change has to include an increase in overall athletic fundraising. Multiple sources with intimate knowledge of the Cal athletic apparatus have told me over the past few months that the Bears grossly underachieve on the fundraising front, as compared to other schools of Cal’s size and stature.

Action: UCLA’s search for a defensive coordinator ends.Reaction I: It only seemed like the process took six months. In reality, it was two.Reaction II: It was the clearest indication yet that Rick Neuheisel’s peers viewed the Bruins as a sinking ship they didn’t want to board. (The man who finally accepted the job, Joe Tresey, spent the 2010 season coaching in the United Football League.)Reaction III: First the on-field performance, then the Norm Chow fiasco, then the recruiting woes, now the DC search … The Bruins are making Washington State look like a model football program.

Action: USC basketball coach Kevin O’Neill says the Pac-10 could get five bids.Reaction I: If he’s including the NIT, CollegeInsider and CBI tournaments, then yes. Absolutely five bids.Reaction II: The conference probably will get three NCAA bids and has a slim shot at four. But five? No chance. O’Neill should have a better sense for the situation.

Action: Wall Street Journal writes about Stanford football recruiting.Reaction I: Stanford wins with smart kids! Stop the presses!Reaction II: The article notes that four recruits who had committed to Stanford went elsewhere after Jim Harbaugh left, but it fails to explain that at least two of the de-commits had nothing to do with the coaching change. In addition, the story makes zero mention of the favorable admission environment that has emerged on The Farm in the past 4-5 years. There’s no chance Stanford football would have thrived the past two years under the admissions approach that was in place in the first half of the last decade under former dean Robin Mamlet. That situation 1) has been reported and 2) seems fairly relevant … and yet the WSJ didn’t bother to address it.

Action: CBS Sports.com columnist Dennis Dodd takes a swing at explaining the Cal quarterback woes (about to enter Year Seven).Reaction: It won’t be the last story on the Bear’s QB dilemma between now and September. And as Dodd notes, Aaron Rodgers’ success only serves to highlight the problems since he left.

Action: Nate Montana transfers to Montana.Reaction: Trying to recall the last time the name on the front of the jersey matched the name on the back of the jersey (and it wasn’t Washington).